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Wednesday, February 18, 2015

State certifies UI-Springfield faculty union

A second University of Illinois campus has formed a union for tenure-system faculty, even as organizing efforts continue at the Urbana-Champaign campus.

The Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board has certified the faculty union at the UI Springfield, which has 137 members and is affiliated with the Illinois Federation of Teachers, union leaders said.

"This win is part of a trend in higher education where faculties are pushing back against college administrators turning university teaching into an unstable, temporary job," a statement from the union said. "Stability for educators means higher retention rates and more experience in the classroom."

The union's goals are listed as negotiating fair wages and benefits, sharing governance with the administration, and freedom from retaliation when advocating for the rights of students.

The UI's Chicago campus signed its first faculty union contract in May 2014, and the Campus Faculty Association is also pushing for a union to represent tenured and tenure-track faculty at Urbana.

The story was published in the Champaign-Urbana News Gazette on February 18, 2015.